Originally Posted by CJMPinger
I think Mass Effect and Dragon Age as series handled the problem of what companions do when you aren't with them. They occupy their own place in the hub and do what they need to or like to do.

The entire Mass Effect series companions serve a role in your crew:
In ME Tali is presiding over the engine of the ship.
In ME2 Garrus is always calibrating weapons.
In ME3 Liara is
||operating the shadow broker network.||

In DA:O they sit around camp but are relaxing, like Oghren drinks.
In DA2 they actually occupy their homes, like Anders is running a clinic.
In DA:I they all occupy parts of Skyhold and act as your inner circle, like Iron Bull rests in the bar and commands his mercenaries.

Bioware figured out in those games to give companions more natural activities, and they do range from contributing to the group to sitting around and relaxing. So I feel if Larian wanted they could give each companion a camp role or something to do, even if that something is staving their own boredom.

BG3 might already be doing this, but the story is in a place where it might not be able to show this, and the presentation of the companions interacting with the world beyond just the main character is rather off right now.

Pathfinder WotR actually does everything you mentioned and takes it up to 11.

In chapter 1, the main base is an overcrowded tavern and smithy that's acting as the sole remaining stronghold for the city's crusaders. And when I say overcrowded, I mean it, there's a LOT of NPCs scattered about. Everyone is obviously a fish out of water at this point in the game.

In chapter 2, the party and crusade are on the move. The party members without any military ties are generally just milling about, but the majority of them try to be productive.

- Ember the witch is out healing people and instilling hope in them with her unusual powers for an elf acting like a little girl, unless you discourage her from doing so later in the chapter. You'd have to be roleplaying a complete asshole to do that though. >:(
- Seelah the Paladin occupies a corner of the camp with her group of adventurer and paladin friends.
- Woljif the eldritch scoundrel tiefling has his 'thiefling' connections set up by this point, and begins acting like a merchant himself. You can even buy from and sell stuff to him.
- Lann the mongrelman archer had spent most of his life living in dark underground caves, and had seldom seen the sky before joining the party. The first time you leave camp, you can overhear a conversation between him and another crusader about why he's always watching the sky. He explains that he had come to learn that the space above him is another potential avenue to get attacked from, to which the crusader calls him paranoid.
- Regill the hellknight joins early on if you allow him to, and he occupies another corner of the camp with his regiment of Hellknights.

By chapter 3, the crusade has retaken a fortress city. Everything is set up in record speed, and all of your companions can be seen attending to their own tasks throughout the city.

- Arueshalae the ranger succubus is seen near the temple, for it's where she feels safest and that her path to redemption was something brought about by Desna, the goddess of dreams. She starts watching the townspeople go through their lives in an effort to remember what it means to live as a mortal from there. Eventually she starts dreaming again, which is a huge deal to her as demons cannot naturally dream. Her personal quests at one point involves asking you to inquire with a lot of people around the city about what they dream of as she discreetly watches, though many of said NPCs end up guessing that Arueshalae put you up to this, but trust you and her enough to answer honestly.
- Seelah is seen training with the other crusaders, paladins, and/or new recruits at the barracks, specifically near the temple.
- Sosiel the cleric is usually seen painting all over the city. His position within the city actually changes depending on the time of day, such as being on the castle walls during the evening to paint the sunset or the city square during the day painting passerby or the statue there. One of his personal quests involves one of the major crusade advisors being concerned about his mental health and hearing rumors about him gambling at night. So you have to catch him in the act near the temple at night to have a chat about it.
- Regill and his hellknights set up their own barracks on the opposite side of the city from the crusader recruits, specifically near the prison as well. Regill himself, being the leader of his group of hellknights, is often seen in the citadel with the rest of the major crusade advisors in the war room.
- Camellia the half-elf shaman druid is doing, uh, Camellia things. Not going to explain as her story is best seen for yourselves.
- Lann is near the entrance to the city, and later in the chapter, he gets to bring the rest of his mongrelmen to the surface to participate in the crusade as well. So he ends up getting them situated into the city as their own faction of new recruits.
- Greybor the dwarven assassin is always sitting in the tavern, presumably awaiting new contracts and getting in touch with his contacts. You hire him during the chapter to help in hunting a dragon that occasionally attacks everyone out in the fields.
- Nenio the kitsune wizard occupies the upper floor of the inn, conducting experiments alone out of eyesight of everyone that's avoiding her for very good reasons.
- Daeran the aasimar oracle is generally skulking about the city in his usual brooding state, but he will occasionally come to the war room to offer his questionable expertise.
- Ember starts the chapter alone, but as her personal quest begins and the chapter progresses, she starts preaching to a crowd about forgiveness and the meaning of a good life. The size of the crowd grows throughout the chapter, although you have the option to discourage her. I've never tried this and I would never consider it.
- Woljif is still selling stuff within the street where numerous other merchants are, and his inventory expands at this point.

Last edited by Saito Hikari; 03/07/21 06:33 PM.